ehann, that's great. I hope one of these roots that fast. Hoovb ... excellent. But I didn't use the piece that was the "heel". I didn't know that piece made the best section for cutting, so I threw it away! I'll be sure to use the "heel" next time. Thanks for that information, I had no idea. triple_b, good luck with your Sharfia Asma cutting. Hope it takes for you. Carla, no, I don't grow Evelyn. My Heritage was planted near the end of last summer. It is now 3.5 feet tall & 4 feet wide. I'm sure it will get a lot larger. I love Heritage, it has already risen to the top of my favorites list, along with PG&A. A light scent of honey & lemon drifts into your nose when you sniff its blooms. Very unusual, very subtle, very good. But you must fully understand that Heritage is a garden plant, not a cutting plant ... don't even consider buying this rose for cutting. A compensation is that the blooms are attractive to their very end, even the pristine petals lying around the shrub on the ground look good (I think I'm setting myself up for a joke there). And it is a very frequent bloomer. Randy

Thanks for letting us know. I live in New Braunfels and still haven't made it out there! for shame, for shame... Missed you at the swap! Thanks for sending the chocolate plant. Did you receive the datura yet? I forgot to bring the datura seeds so can mail them to you. pls contact me at tonyashepard@hotmail.com Tonya

That is really nice that the landfill has a section for "too good to throw away." Nothing like that here. They won't let you take anything...of course, it is all mixed up with household garbage, so pretty nasty. Lots of good things are thrown away all the time. I am not at all hesitant to stop and pick up something off the curb or even snatch something out of a dumpster. Often people will sit out good, useable items to the side of the dumpster, or put it out the day before trash pickup. I got a nice french door, an antique trunk, a couple of side tables and old wooden shutters not too long ago. I couldn't believe they were throwing it away, so I went to the door and knocked...and the lady said they cleaned out the garage, and she was glad I was going to take it. I gave the trunk and one table and shutters to my friend, and kept the french door and one of the side tables. Going to use the door in the house. It had all the hardware and everything. Perfect condition.

I don't think it is your age at all. The process of picking out kitchen elements can be very overwhelming. You have many things to decide (cabs, counters, floor, etc.) and each one has a mind-numbing array of choices. A lot of times making a decision is just a process of elimination. My first thought was the same as sue ct, that your preference for white appliances (or rather, your opposition to stainless or black) narrows down your cab choices to whites and light woods. If you can go with appliance panels, you are back to square one here - but the panels would look great. You know you want wood floors - great! That could be another factor in your elimination process. If you need the flooring to match the flooring in adjoining rooms you have another decision made, and options for other materials (cabinets, counters, etc.) automatically narrowed down. With the decision on the appliances and flooring made, I would NOT go looking at cabinetry. At this point I would go looking for inspiration. If you love granite, go wandering at granite yards and see if you find something that isn't just nice, but that you absolutely love and want to gaze at for 20 minutes. If granite isn't your thing try some tile showrooms. Again, just wander around waiting for something to capture your heart. I guarantee that if you look at enough tile, you will find something that you keep going back to again and again. If not tile, it could be a paint color. Or a rug. Or a beautiful painting of apples in a green bowl. The point is that you need an element to build from, and you really should love that element. Don't rush this inspiration process. Don't tell yourself, "Okay, today I need to find the granite that will make my heart soar.". Just look. Take it in. You will know it when you see it. And then everything builds from that. Here is a scenario for your process... -Let's say that you have decided appliance panels aren't for you - you will stick with white. This dictates white or light wood cabs. -Hmmm, does the flooring help with this decision? Well, the adjoining rooms are a dark-stained oak which will work with either of those cab options, so while we have a decision made on the flooring it doesn't much effect our others. -Off to the granite yard. You see several things you like but nothing you can't live without. No decision made there. -Tile showroom time! It is overwhelming. Wander around and go home empty handed. That night you remember that marble mosaic tile in the serpentine pattern that reminds you of your trip to Italy. -Go back to the showroom the following week and wander again. It's all the same blah blah blah until you see your marble mosaic. Yea. YEA! You really like this one. -Take the sample board home and live with it for a week. Don't stare at it - just have it in your surroundings and see if you get bored with it. If you still love it - congratulations! You have your inspiration! -Time for a counter. You know you prefer Solid Surface because the ease of cleaning and the integrated sink. Because the tile has so much variation in color and pattern, you know a "quiet" or solid pattern would work best, probably in black to work with the black marble in the serpentine mosaic. You find two similar counters that look good with the tile. Take the samples home. -Now is the time to worry about cab finishes. Take the tile and counter samples to the cab showroom and try them near your previously narrowed-choices of shades of white and/or light woods. They look good with the White Aspen paint or the natural Maple. -In your eyes, the white is more traditional, the maple more transitional. You are drawn to more traditional furnishings, so you know the white is a better choice for you. Wahoo! Another decision made! Now you just have other things to obsess over, like knob finishes and sinks and (gasp) lighting. But you see how one decision helps you make another... Nicole